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Look up only child in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
An only child is a person with no siblings, by birth or adoption.
Throughout history, only-children were relatively uncommon. From around the middle of the 20th century, birth rates and average family sizes fell sharply for a number of reasons, including perceived concerns about human overpopulation and more women having their first child later in life due to birth control and women in the workforce. The proportion of families in the United States with only-children increased during the Great Depression but fell during the Post–World War II baby boom. [1] After the Korean War ended in 1953, the South Korean government suggested citizens each have one or two children to boost economic prosperity, which resulted in significantly reduced birth rates and a larger number of only-children in the country. [2] [3]
From 1980 to 2015, the one-child policy in the People's Republic of China restricted most parents to having only one child, although it was subject to local relaxations and individual circumstances (for instance, when twins were conceived). [4] [5] [6]
Families may have an only child for a variety of reasons, including: personal preference, family planning, financial and emotional or physical health issues, desire to travel, stress in the family, educational advantages, late marriage, stability, focus, time constraints, fears over pregnancy, advanced age, illegitimate birth, infertility, divorce, and death of a sibling or parent. The premature death of one parent also contributed to a small percentage of marriages producing just one child until around the mid-20th century, not to mention the then-rare occurrence of divorce.
Only-children are sometimes said to be more likely to develop precocious interests (from spending more time with adults) and to feel lonely. [1] Sometimes they compensate for the aloneness by developing a stronger relationship with themselves [7] or developing an active fantasy life that includes imaginary friends.
In Western countries, only-children can be the subject of a stereotype that equates them with "spoiled brats". G. Stanley Hall was one of the first commentators to give only-children a bad reputation when he referred to their situation as "a disease in itself". Even today, only-children are commonly stereotyped as "spoiled, selfish, and bratty". [8] While many only-children receive a lot of attention and resources for their development, it is not clear that, as a class, they are overindulged or differ significantly from children with siblings. [9] Susan Newman, a social psychologist at Rutgers University and the author of Parenting an Only Child, says that this is a myth. "People articulate that only children are spoiled, they're aggressive, they're bossy, they're lonely, they're maladjusted", she said. "There have been hundreds and hundreds of research studies that show that only children are no different from their peers." [8] However, differences have been found. Research involving teacher ratings of U.S. children's social and interpersonal skills [10] [11] has scored only-children lower in self-control and interpersonal skills. While a later study failed to find evidence that this continued through middle and high school, [12] [13] a further study showed that deficits persisted until at least the fifth grade. [14] Overall, most findings do not support the negative view of only-children, though there are differences. Only-children have proven through many studies that they are smarter, more autonomous, more well-behaved, and more mature than their peers.[ failed verification ] [15]
In China, perceived behavioral problems in only-children have been called the Little Emperor Syndrome, [16] and the lack of siblings has been blamed for a number of social ills such as materialism and crime. However, recent studies do not support these claims, and show no significant differences in personality between only-children and children in larger families. [17] The one-child policy, which ended in 2015, was speculated to be the underlying cause of forced abortions, female infanticide, underreporting [18] of female births, and has been suggested as a possible cause behind China's increasing number of crimes and gender imbalance.
The popular media often posit that it is more difficult for only-children to cooperate in a conventional family environment, as they have no competitors for the attention of their parents and other relatives. It is suggested that confusion arises about the norms of ages and roles and that a similar effect exists in understanding during relationships with other peers and youth, all throughout life. [19] Furthermore, it is believed that many feel that their parents place extra pressure and expectations on the only child, and that often, only-children are perfectionists. [20] Only-children are noted to have a tendency to mature faster. [19] Some psychologists believe in the “only child syndrome," though there is very little evidence to back it up. “Only child syndrome” is the idea that in adulthood, those who have had no siblings are more likely to have less developed social skills and antisocial tendencies that have carried on from childhood.
A 1987 quantitative review [21] of 141 studies on 16 different personality traits failed to support the opinion, held by theorists including Alfred Adler, that only-children are more likely to be maladjusted due to pampering. [22] The study found no evidence of any greater prevalence of maladjustment in only-children. The only statistically significant difference discovered was that only-children possessed a higher achievement motivation, which Denise Polit and Toni Falbo attributed to their greater share of parental resources, expectations, and scrutiny exposing them to a greater degree of reward, and greater likelihood of punishment for falling short. A second analysis by the authors revealed that only-children, children with only one sibling, and first-borns in general score higher on tests of verbal ability than later-borns and children with multiple siblings. [23]
A large (n=8,689) study found no evidence for the idea that only children are more narcissistic than children with siblings. [24]
Toni Falbo & Denise Polit, in their research of only children, gathered 115 studies to address information and evidence for personality, intelligence, adaptability, and relationships with peers and their parents. According to their findings, only-children surpassed all others in each category except for children who were in similar circumstances to them, such as first borns. One of their biggest findings was that the parent-child relationship was positively stronger compared to those children with siblings. Due to this relationship being significantly present in an only child's life, it correlated to developmental outcomes, showing that only-children were not at a developmental disadvantage. [15]
According to the Resource Dilution Model, [25] parental resources (e.g. time to read to the child) are important in development. Because these resources are finite, children with many siblings are thought to receive fewer resources. However, the Confluence Model [26] suggests there is an opposing effect from the benefits to the non-youngest children of tutoring younger siblings, though being tutored does not make up the reduced share of parental resources. This provides one explanation for the poorer performance on tests of ability of only-children compared to first-borns, commonly seen in the literature, [26] [27] though explanations such as the increased and earlier likelihood of experiencing parental separation or loss for last-born and only children have also been suggested, as this may be the cause of their very status. [27]
In his book Maybe One, [28] the environmental campaigner Bill McKibben argues in favor of a voluntary one-child policy on the grounds of climate change and overpopulation. He reassures the reader with a narrative constructed from interviews with researchers and writers on only-children, combined with snippets from the research literature, that this would not be harmful to child development. He argues that most cultural stereotypes are false, that there are not many differences between only-children and other children, and where there are differences, they are favorable to the only child.
Most research on only-children has been quantitative and focused on the behavior of only-children and on how others, for example teachers, assess that behavior. Bernice Sorensen, in contrast, used qualitative methods in order to elicit meaning and to discover what only-children themselves understand, feel, or sense about their lives that are lived without siblings. Her research showed that during their life span, only children often become more aware of their only-child status and are very much affected by society's stereotype of the only-child, whether or not the stereotype is true or false. She argues in her book, Only Child Experience and Adulthood, that growing up in a predominantly sibling society affects only-children and that their lack of sibling relationships can have an important effect on both the way they see themselves and others and how they interact with the world. [29]
The latest research by Cameron et al. (2011) controls for endogeneity associated with being only-children. Parents that choose to have only one child could differ systematically in their characteristics from parents who choose to have more than one child. The paper concludes that "those who grew up as only children as a consequence of the [one-child] policy [in China] are found to be less trusting, less trustworthy, less likely to take risks, and less competitive than if they had had siblings. They are also less optimistic, less conscientious, and more prone to neuroticism". [30] Furthermore, according to Professor Cameron, it was found that "greater exposure to other children in childhood – for example, frequent interactions with cousins and/or attending childcare – was not a substitute for having siblings". [31]
In his book Born to Rebel, Frank Sulloway provides evidence that birth order influences the development of the "big five personality traits" (also known as the Five Factor Model). Sulloway suggests that firstborns and only-children are more conscientious, more socially dominant, less agreeable, and less open to new ideas compared to later-borns. [32] However, his conclusions have been challenged by other researchers, [33] who argue that birth order effects are weak and inconsistent. In one of the largest studies conducted on the effect of birth order on the Big Five, data from a national sample of 9,664 subjects found no association between birth order and scores on the NEO PI-R personality test. [34] Similarly, a large study (n = 8,689) from 2020 did not find any evidence for the hypothesis that only children are more narcissistic than non-only children. [35]
The one-child policy was a population planning initiative in China implemented between 1979 and 2015 to curb the country's population growth by restricting many families to a single child. The program had wide-ranging social, cultural, economic, and demographic effects, although the contribution of one-child restrictions to the broader program has been the subject of controversy. Its efficacy in reducing birth rates and defensibility from a human rights perspective have been subjects of controversy.
Sex-selective abortion is the practice of terminating a pregnancy based upon the predicted sex of the infant. The selective abortion of female fetuses is most common where male children are valued over female children, especially in parts of East Asia and South Asia, as well as in the Caucasus, Western Balkans, and to a lesser extent North America. Based on the third National Family and Health Survey, results showed that if both partners, mother and father, or just the father, preferred male children, sex-selective abortion was more common. In cases where only the mother prefers sons, this is likely to result in sex-selective neglect in which the child is not likely to survive past infancy.
A parent is either the progenitor of a child or, in humans, it can refer to a caregiver or legal guardian, generally called an adoptive parent or step-parent. The gametes of a parent result in a child, a male through the sperm, and a female through the ovum. Parents who are progenitors are first-degree relatives and have 50% genetic meet. A female can also become a parent through surrogacy. Some parents may be adoptive parents, who nurture and raise an offspring, but are not related to the child. Orphans without adoptive parents can be raised by their grandparents or other family members.
In social psychology, an interpersonal relation describes a social association, connection, or affiliation between two or more persons. It overlaps significantly with the concept of social relations, which are the fundamental unit of analysis within the social sciences. Relations vary in degrees of intimacy, self-disclosure, duration, reciprocity, and power distribution. The main themes or trends of the interpersonal relations are: family, kinship, friendship, love, marriage, business, employment, clubs, neighborhoods, ethical values, support and solidarity. Interpersonal relations may be regulated by law, custom, or mutual agreement, and form the basis of social groups and societies. They appear when people communicate or act with each other within specific social contexts, and they thrive on equitable and reciprocal compromises.
A sibling is a relative that shares at least one parent with the other person. A male sibling is a brother, and a female sibling is a sister. A person with no siblings is an only child.
Birth order refers to the order a child is born in their family; first-born and second-born are examples. Birth order is often believed to have a profound and lasting effect on psychological development. This assertion has been repeatedly challenged. Recent research has consistently found that earlier born children score slightly higher on average on measures of intelligence, but has found zero, or almost zero, robust effect of birth order on personality. Nevertheless, the notion that birth-order significantly influences personality continues to have a strong presence in pop psychology and popular culture.
The authoritarian personality is a personality type characterized by a disposition to treat authority figures with unquestioning obedience and respect. Conceptually, the term authoritarian personality originated from the writings of Erich Fromm, and usually is applied to people who exhibit a strict and oppressive personality towards their subordinates. Regardless of whether authoritarianism is more of a personality, attitude, ideology or disposition, scholars find it has significant influence on public opinion and political behavior.
The little emperor syndrome is an aspect or view of Mainland China's one-child policy. It occurs where children of the modern upper class and wealthier Chinese families, gain seemingly excessive amounts of attention from their parents and grandparents. Combined with increased spending power within the family unit due to China's growing economic strength, and parents' general desire for their child to experience the benefits they themselves were denied, the phenomenon is generally considered to be controversial. The British journalist Andrew Marshall even argues that it is shaping modern Chinese society in unexpected ways that may culminate into a future "behavioral time-bomb".
Frank Jones Sulloway is an American psychologist and historian of science. He is a visiting scholar at the Institute of Personality and Social Research at the University of California, Berkeley and a visiting professor in the Department of Psychology. After finishing secondary school at Moses Brown School in Providence, Rhode Island, Sulloway studied at Harvard College and later earned a PhD in the history of science at Harvard. He was a visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
A parenting style is a pattern of behaviors, attitudes, and approaches that a parent uses when interacting with and raising their child. The study of parenting styles is based on the idea that parents differ in their patterns of parenting and that these patterns can have a significant impact on their children's development and well-being. Parenting styles are distinct from specific parenting practices, since they represent broader patterns of practices and attitudes that create an emotional climate for the child. Parenting styles also encompass the ways in which parents respond to and make demands on their children.
A two-child policy is a government-imposed limit of two children allowed per family or the payment of government subsidies only to the first two children.
Siblings play a unique role in one another's lives that simulates the companionship of parents as well as the influence and assistance of friends. Because siblings often grow up in the same household, they have a large amount of exposure to one another, like other members of the immediate family. However, though a sibling relationship can have both hierarchical and reciprocal elements, this relationship tends to be more egalitarian and symmetrical than with family members of other generations. Furthermore, sibling relationships often reflect the overall condition of cohesiveness within a family.
A narcissistic parent is a parent affected by narcissism or narcissistic personality disorder. Typically, narcissistic parents are exclusively and possessively close to their children and are threatened by their children's growing independence. This results in a pattern of narcissistic attachment, in which the parent believes that the child exists solely to fulfill the parent's needs and wishes. A narcissistic parent will often try to control his or her children with threats and emotional abuse. Narcissistic parenting adversely affects children's psychological development, affecting their reasoning and their emotional, ethical, and societal behaviors and attitudes. Personal boundaries are often disregarded so the narcissistic parent can mold and manipulate the child to satisfy the parent's expectations.
Attention seeking behavior is to act in a way that is likely to elicit attention. Attention seeking behavior is defined in the DSM-5 as "engaging in behavior designed to attract notice and to make oneself the focus of others' attention and admiration". This definition does not ascribe a motivation to the behavior and assumes a human actor, although the term "attention seeking" sometimes also assumes a motive of seeking validation. People are thought to engage in both positive and negative attention seeking behavior independent of the actual benefit or harm to health. In line with much research and a dynamic self-regulatory processing model of narcissism, motivations for attention seeking are considered to be driven by self-consciousness and thus an externalization of personality rather than internal and self-motivated behavior. Attention seeking is often caused by threats to one's self-concept and the need for social acceptance. This type of influence on behavior can result in a potential loss of a person's sense of agency, personality disorder and the behavior associated with these conditions.
Fertility factors are determinants of the number of children that an individual is likely to have. Fertility factors are mostly positive or negative correlations without certain causations.
The Birth Order Book: Why You Are the Way You Are is a 1982 non-fiction book by Christian psychologist Kevin Leman on birth order and its potential influence on personality and development. An updated and revised version of the book was published in 1998 through Baker Publishing Group. Leman first learned about birth order while a student at the University of Arizona. Several notable psychologists including the founder of birth order theory Alfred Adler, and Jules Angst have disputed the effects of birth order on personality and other outcomes.
Niche picking is a psychological theory that people choose environments that complement their heredity. For example, extroverts may deliberately engage with others like themselves. Niche picking is a component of gene-environment correlation.
Middle child syndrome is the idea that the middle children of a family, those born in between siblings, are treated or seen differently by their parents from the rest of their siblings. The theory believes that the particular birth order of siblings affects children's character and development process because parents focus more on the first and last-born children. The term is not used to describe a mental disorder. Instead, it is a hypothetical idea telling how middle children see the world based on their subconscious upbringing. As a result, middle children are believed to develop different characteristics and personality traits from the rest of their siblings, as well as experiencing household life differently from the rest of their siblings.
A firstborn is the first child born to in the birth order of a couple through childbirth. Historically, the role of the firstborn child has been socially significant, particularly for a firstborn son in patriarchal societies. In law, many systems have incorporated the concept of primogeniture, wherein the firstborn child inherits their parent's property. The firstborn in Judaism, the bechor, is also accorded a special position.
Toni Falbo is a social psychologist known for her research on power dynamics in relationships, sibling status, and development of only children. She is a professor of Educational Psychology and Faculty Research Affiliate of the Population Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin.
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